Thursday, 14 November 2019

 Ms CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:53): My constituency question is to the Minister for Housing and relates to a hostel operating in the area of St Kilda in my electorate of Southern Metro. It has been raised with me by a number of people. St Kilda Hostel is located on Carlisle Street, a location infamous for its reputation as a hotbed of criminal activity, rather than being a hospitable location for travellers. In recent months call-outs to police concerning drug use, violence, the breaching of intervention orders and theft, amongst other crimes, have been relentless, with police targeting the location in a recent crackdown. The effects of these crimes are echoed in many of the negative reviews of the hostel online by travellers. Most concerning, however, are recent reports that a woman fleeing a domestic violence situation and seeking crisis accommodation was placed in this location by housing agency Launch Housing. The woman recounted her experience as a night of absolute horror in a filthy room infested with rodents and cockroaches, with people under the influence of drugs and alcohol banging on her door and yelling. I ask the minister: why are vulnerable women who are fleeing domestic violence situations being sent to these horrific and clearly unsafe locations, and what are you and your department doing to ensure that they have suitable crisis accommodation in their time of need?